Disability Discrimination
Employment Lawyers Representing Employees in Miami
Title I of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 prohibits private
employers, state and local governments, employment agencies and labor
unions from discriminating against qualified individuals with disabilities
in job application procedures, hiring, firing, advancement, compensation,
job training, and other terms of employment. The ADA covers employers
with 15 or more employees.
Who Is Covered?
An individual with a disability is a person who has a physical or mental
impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities
and has a record of the impairment. A qualified employee or applicant
with a disability is an individual who, with or without reasonable accommodation,
can perform the essential functions of the job in question.
What Are Resonable Accommodations?
- A reasonable accommodation for an employee with a disability may include
any of the following:
- Making existing facilities used by employees readily accessible to and
usable by persons with disabilities
- Job restructuring
- Modifying work schedules
- Modifying equipment, devices, or examinations
- Providing qualified readers or interpreters
An employer is required to make a reasonable accommodation to the known
disability of a qualified applicant or employee, if the accommodation
does not impose an "undue hardship" on the operation of the
employer's business.
Undue hardship is defined as an action requiring significant difficulty
or expense when considered in light of factors such as an employer's
size, financial resources, and the nature and structure of its operation.
An employer is not required to lower quality or production standards to
make an accommodation for a disabled employee.
Also, an employer is not obligated to provide personal use items such as
glasses or hearing aids. Under the ADA, employers may not ask job applicants
about the existence, nature, or severity of a disability. However, applicants
may be asked about their ability to perform specific job functions and
a job offer may be conditioned on the results of a medical examination
(if the examination is required for all entering employees in similar
jobs, job related, and is consistent with the business needs of the employer).
What Does the ADA say about Retaliation?
An employer cannot retaliate against an individual for opposing employment
practices that discriminate based on a disability, which includes filing
a discrimination charge, testifying, or participating in any way in a
proceeding under the
ADA. Participation, in this case, means taking part in an employment discrimination
proceeding. Participation is protected activity even if the proceeding
involved claims that ultimately were found to be invalid.
If you have any questions about disability discrimination, call Remer &
Georges-Pierre PLLC for a free consultation at 305.416.5000 or fill out our
online request form.